USA: Newport News Shipbuilding Presents Internships for Local Teachers

Huntington Ingalls Industries announced on August 3rd, that 23 educators from public schools throughout southeastern Virginia are participating in a teacher internship through the Career Pathways program at its Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS) division.

Through Career Pathways, NNS partners with public school systems to mentor both students and teachers to enrich schools’ curricula. Specifically designed for teachers and counselors, this full-time internship allows selected middle- and high-school educators to gain insight throughout NNS’ different programs and trades by experiencing what craftsman such as welders, pipefitters and electricians do to build and maintain ships for the U.S. Navy. The educators will be able to incorporate their new knowledge into future lesson plans to help students prepare for careers in shipbuilding, manufacturing and other STEM-related (science, technology, engineering and math) fields.

“It was great to see exactly what the shipyard workers do,” said participant Angela Picot, a chemistry teacher from Denbigh High School. “I was impressed to see how these craftsmen work so hard and are proud of their final product. I plan on incorporating the lessons I learned from this experience into future lesson plans in my science classes.”

The internship, broken into two two-week sessions, began July 9 and will end on Aug. 10. Throughout the two weeks, teachers are broken into teams and work with trades and program shipbuilding professionals to complete projects aimed at educating and informing the public about NNS and its operations. At the end of the internship, they give presentations about their experience to shipyard leaders and provide reports for their individual schools to further education about NNS and its broad range of career opportunities for students.

“Our partnership with the local school systems is an essential tool in educating the community on the lasting career opportunities we have here,” said George Decker, director of NNS Talent Acquisition. “At NNS, we build careers as well as great ships.”

[mappress]

Source: huntingtoningalls, August 7, 2012